Lecture 2.

Relativistic kinematics, part II

Outline:
Length Contraction
Relativistic Velocity Addition
Relativistic Doppler Effect
Red shift in the Universe

Relativistic effects: length contraction

mirror

Question : how long does the signal take to complete the round trip?

An observer in the cars rest RF :

x
t 2
c

x ' V t1 '
x ' V t2 '
t 2 '
c
c
x '
x '
1
2c
1
t1 '
t2 '
t ' x '

x
'

c V
c V
c V c V
c2 V 2
t

t
'

These intervals are related by the time dilation formula:

1 V 2 / c2

An observer on
the ground :

t ' t1 ' t2 '

x
2c

1 V 2 / c 2 x ' 2
2
c
c V

t1 '

x ' x 1 V / c
2

Moving objects
are shortened

Length Contraction (contd)

Of course, the same results stems directly from L.Tr.:
Proper length L0 : the length of an object measured in its rest RF (

K0

x10

An observer in the RF K moving with respect to the RF K0 with

the velocity V directed parallel to the meter stick, measures its
length. In order to do that, he/she finds two points x1 and x2 in
his/her RF that would simultaneously coincide with the ends
of the moving stick (t1 =t2).

x20
r
V

Comment Its easier to write L.Tr. for the proper length

interval in the right-hand side:

observer

t2 t1

x20 x10

x2 x1 V t2 t1
1

V
c2

Compare:

x 0 x20 x10 ).

x 0 Vt 0
V2
1 2
c

x0

x Vt
V2
1 2
c

- the end positions are measured simultaneously in K

- moving objects
x2 x1
2
are contracted in
V
L

L
1

2
the direction of
0
2
V
c
1 2
their motion

x20 x10 x2 x1 V t2 t1 x2 x1

L L0

Length contraction (contd)

V2
L L0 1 2
c

- moving objects are

contracted in the direction of
their motion

10 To observe this effect, the relative speed of the reference

frames should be large. For the fastest spacecraft, the speed
is ~10-4c, and the effect is of an order of 10-8:

1
L / L0

V / c

20 Contraction occurs only

in the direction of relative
motion of RFs!

ct ct x
x x ct
y y
z z

disc at rest

r
V

the same disc as seen

by observer K

Recapitulation: decay of cosmic-ray muons

Muon an electrically charged unstable elementary particle with a rest energy ~ 207 times
greater than the rest energy of an electron. The muon has an average half-life of 2.2 10-6 s.
Muons are created at high altitudes due to collisions of fast cosmic-ray particles (mostly
protons) with atoms in the Earth atmosphere. (Most cosmic rays are generated in our
galaxy, primarily in supernova explosions)
N0 the number of muons
generated at high altitude

v 2.994 108 m / s 0.998c 0.998

In the muons rest frame

t0 2.2 106 s

By ignoring relativistic effects (wrong!), we get the decay length:

~20 km

altitude

L t0 c 2.2 106 s 3 108 m / s 660m

N the number of
muons measured in
the sea-level lab

20, 000
N N 0 exp
N 0 exp 30
660

In fact, the decay length is much greater, the muons can be

detected even at the sea level!
Because of the time
dilation, in the RF of the
lab observer the muons
lifetime is:

t0

35 106 s

1 2
L 35 106 s 3 108 m / s 10.5km
20, 000
N N 0 exp
N 0 exp 2
10,500

Decay of cosmic-ray muons in the muons RF

Lets reconsider the same situation, but now our observer moves with the muon
(the muons rest IRF)

v 2.994 108 m / s 0.998c 0.998

N0 the number of muons
generated at high altitude

We can re-interpret this situation in terms of the

length contraction:
The life-time in the rest frame:

In the muons rest frame, the distance to the Earth (~20 km in

the Earths RF) is significantly shortened:
altitude

~20 km

t0 2.2 106 s

L L0 1 2 2 104 m 0.063 1260m

The travel time

N the number of
muons measured in
the sea-level lab

1260m
6

10
s
8
3 10 m / s

becomes comparable with the muon life-time.

Thus, again, there is a considerable number of muons
(the same as weve calculated in the lab RF) that can be
detected at the sea level.

Problems
1. The nearest star to the Earth is Proxima Centauri, 4.3 light-years away.
- at what constant speed must a spacecraft travel from the Earth if it is to reach
the star in 2.5 years, as measured by travelers on the spacecraft?
- how long does this trip take according to earth observers?

Consider two IRFs, K (the Earth) and K (the

rest RF of the spacecraft). By astronaut's
reckoning (K), the distance to the star is
contracted:

r
V

L ' L 1 V / c

L
L'

V
2
V 2
L
Vt ' 1 2
c
c

and the time of travel is

L 1 V / c

L 1 V / c

t'

According to earth observers:

V
V

c
t

t '

4.3 years
2

L/c

L / c

t '

0.864

L L / c 4.3 yr

5 yr
V V / c 0.864

2. Consider a disc at rest. We know that the circumference/diameter

ratio is . Now the disc rotates around its center. If one applies the
Lotentz length contraction to the disc, the result would be puzzling: the
circumference shrinks while the diameter (which is normal to the
velocity) remains intact, so circumference/diameter ! Whats
going on ???

r
V

Relativistic Velocity Addition

r
v

x1 , t1

observer

x2 , t2

x1 ' x1 Vt1
x2 ' x2 Vt2
t1 ' t1 V / c 2 x1
t2 ' t2 V / c 2 x2
v,V c v ' v V
c V
v c v'
c
cV
1 2
c

r
V

IRF K: a particle moves a

distance dx in a time dt
IRF K: a particle moves a
distance dx in a time dt

x2 x1
v
t2 t1
x2 ' x1 '
v'
t2 ' t1 '

x2 x1 V t2 t1
v V
v'

2
vV
t2 t1 V / c x2 x1
1 2
c
v V
+ anti-parallel
r r
v'
v
, V
vV
- - parallel
1 2
c
- Galilean velocity addition
Speed of light is the largest speed in
nature, no body nor any signal can
travel with the speed greater than c.

Problems
1. A person on a rocket traveling at 0.6c (with respect to the Earth) observes a meteor
passing him at a speed he measures as 0.6c. How fast is the meteor moving with respect
to the Earth?

v 0.6c

v 0.6c V 0.6c

Galilean velocity addition:

r
V

Relativistic velocity addition:

v ' v V 1.2c
v V
1.2c
v'

0.88c
vV 1 0.36
1 2
c

2. As the outlaws escape in their gateway car, which goes 3/4c, the police officer fires abullet
from the pursuit car, which only goes 1/2c. The muzzle velocity of the bullet (relative to the
gun) is 1/3c. Does the bullet reach its target (a) according to Galileo, (b) according to
Einstein?

v3 0.33c

v2 0.5c
K

v1 0.75c

v ' v V v3 v2 0.83c
v3 v2
5 / 6c
v3 '

0.71c
1 v3v2 / c 2 1 1/ 6

Transverse Doppler Effect

Classical Doppler effect (e.g., Doppler effect in sound, the increase in pitch of a sound
when its source approaches us):

f f0

1 v / c
1V / c

v the speed of an observer with respect to air (the

medium where the waves propagate)
V the speed of the source of sound with respect to air

f (f0) the frequency of sound heard by an observer (in the rest frame of the source).
Doppler effect in light - a change in the observed light frequency due to a relative
motion of the light source and an observer (no special RF associated with the medium
where light propagates!):
light
K
r
wave
1. Transverse Doppler effect
observer
V
fronts
T0 - the period of oscillations
of the e.-m. field in the
K
rest RF of the source K
(the proper time)
T - the period of oscillations in the RF of the moving observer

f 0 1/ T0

f 1/ T

1 1

1 2 f0 1 2
T T0

f is always smaller than f0

red shift (shift to lower
frequencies)

The origin of the transverse Doppler effect is time dilation, this is a pure
relativistic effect, no counterpart in classical mechanics.

Longitudinal Doppler Effect

10

The light source and the observer move away from each other.

observer

light

r
V

V is the velocity of the relative

motion of an observer with respect
to the light source.

VT
V

T T
T 1
c
c

an extra time needed for the next

light front to reach an observer

T T0 1
2

1
1

T0

1
1

1
1

1 V / c

- the same time dilation as in the

case of the transverse Doppler Effect

f f0

1
1

The light source and the observer approach each other.

f f0

T0

- red shift

r
r
V V

- blue shift (shift toward higher frequencies)

The most frequent encounter with Doppler effect in light (microwave):

police radar speed detectors (no relativistic effects though)

Hubbles Law (1929)

The Universe expands: the larger the distance to an object, the larger the (relative) speed.
By measuring the red shift of (identifiable) spectral lines, one can calculate the recessional
speed of the light source with respect to the Earths observer.
According to Hubble's Law, there is a direct proportionality (at least at not too large
distances) between the velocity and the distance to the source:

V H0 d

V - the observed velocity of the galaxy away from us

H0 - Hubble's "constant" (units: s-1)
d - the distance to the galaxy (1 Megaparsec=3106 light-yrs)

Today the value of H0 is still rather uncertain, but is

generally believed to be ~7020 km/sec/Mpc. Hubbles
constant gives us the age of the Universe 0:

H 0 70

km / s
2.3 1018 s 1
Mpc

0 1/ H 0 13.8 109 yr

c 0

now

the horizon of
visibility = infinite
red shift

Extreme red shifts: quasars and CMBR

Quasars, very bright objects (like 100-10,000 our Galaxies)
of a very small size (10-4 of our Galaxy size), believed to be
supermassive black holes in the nuclei of distant galaxies.
Distance: (2-10)109 light-years.
Doppler shift: f/f ~0.1-6.4 (!)
Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (CMBR) In the
standard Big Bang model, the radiation is decoupled from
the matter in the Universe about 300,000 years after the Big
Bang, when the temperature dropped to the point where
neutral atoms form (T~3000K). At this moment, the Universe
became transparent for the primordial photons. This
radiation is coming from all directions and its spectrum is
quite distinct from the radiation from stars and galaxies).
Currently, the energy of the CMB photons is red shifted to ~ 3K (f = f0/1000 !).
The sub-mm/THz range contains ~ half of the total luminosity of the Universe and
98% of all the photons emitted since the Big Bang.

R. Wilson
A. Penzias
Nobel 1978
Mather, Smoot, Nobel 2006

Problem
Imagine an alien spaceship traveling so fast that it crosses our galaxy (whose rest
diameter is 100,000 light-years) in only 100 years of spaceship time. Observers at rest in
the galaxy would say that this is possible because the ships speed is so close to 1 that
the proper time it measures between its entry into and departure from the galaxy is much
shorter than the galaxy-frame coordinate time (~100,000 ly) between those events. Find
the exact value of the speed that the aliens must have to cross the galaxy in 100 years.

t0
1 2

t0
1
103
t
2

1 10

1 2 106

2 1 10 6

106
1
0.9999995
2

n n 1 2
1 n
.....
2!

How does it look to the aliens? To them, their clocks are running normally, but the galaxy,
which moves backward relative to them at speed 1, is Lorentz contracted. What is the
galaxys size by aliens reckoning?